Podcast
Gangland Wire
Hosted by Gary Jenkins: Mafia Detective · EN
Gangland Wire Crime Stories is a unique true crime podcast. The host, Gary Jenkins, is a former Kansas City Police Intelligence Unit Detective. Gary uses his experience to give insigtful twists on famous organized characters across the United States. He tells crime stories from his own career and invites former FBI agents, police officers and criminals to educate and entertain listeners.
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Paul Rico: Crooked Agent Gets His Due
Jul 7, 202501:04:25Tap to summarizeIn this episode of Gangland Wire, retired Tulsa homicide detective Mike Huff joins host Gary Jenkins to break down one of the most shocking mob hits in U.S. history. Det. Huff tells about the 1981 murder of businessman Roger Wheeler at Southern Hills Country Club and the investigation that ended in the arrest of Boston F.B.I. agent Paul Rico. You can learn more about this story by reading Mike’s book, Killing My Father: The Inside Story of the Biggest FBI Corruption Scandal in History. What started as a local homicide case quickly unraveled into a national organized crime conspiracy involving Florida Jai Alai gambling, the Winter Hill Gang, and notorious Boston mob boss Whitey Bulger. Huff shares how he uncovered links to FBI corruption, the Dixie Mafia, and hitman John Martorano, who eventually confessed to the killing. Huff also opens up about working with Roger Wheeler’s son, David, the emotional toll of the investigation, and how their joint efforts finally exposed the truth. His book Killing My Father reveals even more about this decades-long fight for justice. Subscribe to get gangster stories weekly. Hit me up on Venmo for a cup of coffee or a shot and a beer @ganglandwire Click here to “buy me a cup of coffee” To go to the store or make a donation or rent Ballot Theft: Burglary, Murder, Coverup, click here To rent Brothers against Brothers, the documentary, click here. To rent Gangland Wire, the documentary, click here To buy my Kindle book, Leaving Vegas: The True Story of How FBI Wiretaps Ended Mob Domination of Las Vegas Casinos. Transcript [0:00] Well, hey, all you wiretappers, good to be back here in the studio of Gangland Wire. I have another former cop, a retired copper from not too far away from Tulsa, Oklahoma, and he has a heck of a story. He’s written a book about it, but it’s a heck of a story. Down in Tulsa, Oklahoma, they’ve got a mob murderer. Well, now, mob murders don’t just go down every day in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and it’s a really interesting story that ties clear back to to the highlight business down in florida to the winter hill gang in uh boston massachusetts uh to whitey bulger really and and a hit man named john moderano and to a one of the infamous corrupt fbi agents out of boston you know they seem to have had a problem in the boston fbi for a period of years there and a couple three of their guys end up going to jail uh over probably being a little bit overly uh that they forgot where the line was it looks to me like but anyhow it was uh it’s a retired detective mike huff welcome mike, Well, hey, welcome to U2. Thank you for doing this. All right, Mike. Now, tell us a little bit about your career. You know, how did you come up through the ranks in Tulsa PD? Well, I started in January of 1975. [1:20] I got promoted to a detective in 1980. I didn’t much like it. It wasn’t enough action. I had a good career on the street. But I like my supervisor a lot. So I stuck with this being a detective. [1:39] In May of 81, May 27th, you know, I just got to work. I was checking on a guy that I had shot three weeks earlier who was in intensive care. We’re just sitting there and we’re talking about we’re going to eat supper. And I was on the phone with the hospital. Checking on this guy’s condition, and police radio came on and said, we need all the homicide detectives to head out to Southern Hills Country Club on a shooting. I guess 5-0s that night, you know, we hit it out there, and, you know, Southern Hills, even at that time, before a lot of all the major golf tournaments they’ve since had, was a very, well, it was the kind of place that I wasn’t familiar with. [2:34] Everybody with money was part of that country club, and I wasn’t one of that crowd. There’s a middle-aged man swamped over in a seated car. He’d been shot between the eyes. It was a little bit foreign to me. You know, I’d been a homicide detective for a year and had been to a good bunch of homicides, but most of them were, you know, street murders or domestics, things like that. And so I knew this one was going to be a bit different, but I didn’t know how different this was going to be. I think I was 25 at the time. My supervisor told me this was going to be my being in charge of the scene. So we started making assignments. Very little evidence of the scene. There were four live rounds laying right outside the opened doorway of Mr. Wheeler’s Cadillac. You know, that was pretty puzzling. This one’s right near one of the… [3:40] Really nice swimming pools out there, and we found a few witnesses. People had seen this car. It looked out of place. I don’t know why anybody hadn’t had somebody check it out. A couple guys sitting in the car. Mike, tell us a little bit about how did you figure out who this guy was? He was pretty well-known in Tulsa, and that’s a pretty well-known country club guy. Just for your information, the Southern Hills Country Club is a primo, premier golf course here in the Midwest. And it’s nothing but high-end, rich oil people in Tulsa, I believe, mainly went to that. And so tell us about how you figured out who this victim was. He had a nice car. Well, the people were abuzz and said, you know, [4:31] you don’t know who this guy is. He owns a telex corporation. Well, that didn’t mean a whole lot to me, other than they said, you know, he employs thousands of people. You know, this was a time that was before Google or the Internet or cell phones or anything. I think I had a police radio, and I don’t even think pagers were invented yet. [5:02] Communication was tough. You know, the word started trickling in of who he was. I guess we were probably out at the scene for six or seven hours and documenting it and getting our pictures and all that kind of scene work. We went back to the station, detective area, we called it the bullpen. The bullpen was filled with brass, people they’d called in and whatever. The word was there was going to be a 13-man task force formed on this deal, and they started breaking that out. Boy, for some reason, I sure thought I wanted to be on it. And I got the word to the sergeant that there is a scene in the book that we wrote. This sergeant, Roy Hunt, was a legend. He had solved murders for decades. I really liked him. He liked me. He pulled me to the side and he said, hey, if you get involved in this, it’s probably going to change your life. And he said, you’ve got a pretty good career down here. So, you know, this is probably going to screw it up, you know, if it doesn’t kill you. I mean, I was so young, green, that I said, oh, man, I don’t want to do this. He said, all right, let’s drink to it. So he pulled out a bottle of whiskey and a couple of shot glasses from his desk. The good old days. [6:29] And so we need a, We had a drink about it. You know, I wasn’t the only guy involved. I mean, involved in that task force. After about a couple weeks, the lead started dwindling. It boiled down to me and a really good fellow named Dick Bishop. We got assigned a case. You know, it was a good learning experience for me. I had Dick Bishop. I had my sergeant. You know, we were, for some reason, 1981, that was a big homicide year for Tulsa. We had close to 80 homicides. I was working around the clock. You know, I mean, I’d pick up a grounder here or there on top of this. [7:11] And so we stayed busy, but we got a call from the state police in Massachusetts. And they said, hey, I need to be up here. Actually, Dick and Sergeant Walter Hunt went to Boston. I didn’t make that trip. But I just worked another homicide. Let me ask you a question here. At this point in time, I know a red ball like that, a hot case like that, where the phones light up at first with all kinds of bad leads and crazy leads, and everybody’s running down all these leads. But you mentioned that there was a car in the lot that somebody mentioned was suspicious. Was that, had you figured out that was the car that had been occupied by whoever killed Roger Wheeler? Yes, sir. It was the late 70s, probably a 79 or 80, four-door, LTD, four-door. Two guys with beards were in the car and they were And somebody got a partial tag. That partial tag, I mean, we had conflicting information about even the partial tag. [8:22] I mean, we had a couple of witnesses with different partial tag numbers. [8:27] These guys were pros. They had stole the tag off a similar car. It was a huge dead end, but it took so much effort to follow that lead. This was a time, well, you know, it was just tell times. You couldn’t sit down in front of the computer and do anything because there weren’t computers. You know, that was a lead that we worked on. We also got a lead very early on that put us on to the Dixie Mafia, and those were some bad guys. The...
Transcribe →Gennaro Angiulo Wiretapped
Feb 24, 2025Tap to summarizeIn this episode of Gangland Wire Crime Stories, I dive into the intricate world of the Boston Mafia, focusing on the notorious Gennaro Angiulo family and their operations. As a retired Kansas City police intelligence detective, my fascination with organized crime has led me to some of the most compelling stories in law enforcement history. Today, I’m joined by Ian Cross, an expert on Boston’s underworld, for a deep dive into the city’s mob landscape, the power struggles between the Italian and Irish factions, and the innovative tactics used to dismantle these criminal empires. We start with a behind-the-scenes look at the FBI’s surveillance methods—how agents installed covert microphones, maintained secrecy, and penetrated the Mafia’s inner circles. I share a striking Kansas City case where a courtroom revelation exposed a long-hidden bugging technique, shedding light on the FBI’s relentless efforts. Ian provides his expertise on Boston’s organized crime scene, detailing how law enforcement’s meticulous strategies put pressure on the Angiulo family’s gambling empire. Ian also introduces us to The Big Dig, his previous podcast exploring Boston’s controversial tunnel project and its ties to corruption and organized crime. This leads us to the heart of today’s episode—Gennaro “Jerry” Angiulo, the underboss who controlled the city’s illegal gambling operations from the North End. We discuss his rise to power, his strategic avoidance of violence, and the FBI’s elaborate efforts to bring him down through surveillance and legal maneuvers. As we unpack the Angiulo family’s criminal enterprise, Ian shares gripping details of the FBI’s wiretaps—how agents captured Jerry’s conversations, exposing the inner workings of Boston’s Mafia. We also explore the broader impact of these investigations, including the tensions within the organization and the shifting landscape of organized crime in the city. Ian previews his upcoming podcast, Scratch and Win, which explores the Mafia’s transition from controlling underground gambling to the rise of state-run lotteries. It’s fascinating how organized crime adapts to new realities while continuing to operate in the shadows. Join us for this in-depth discussion on one of Boston’s most influential Mafia families and the law enforcement strategies that ultimately took them down. Don’t forget to subscribe for more true crime stories from organized crime. Subscribe to get new gangster stories every week. Hit me up on Venmo for a cup of coffee or a shot and a beer @ganglandwire Click here to “buy me a cup of coffee” To go to the store or make a donation or rent Ballot Theft: Burglary, Murder, Coverup, click here To rent Brothers against Brothers, the documentary, click here. To rent Gangland Wire, the documentary, click here To buy my Kindle book, Leaving Vegas: The True Story of How FBI Wiretaps Ended Mob Domination of Las Vegas Casinos. To subscribe on iTunes click here. Please give me a review and help others find the podcast. Donate to the podcast. Click here! #TrueCrime #BostonMafia #OrganizedCrime #GanglandWire #AngiuloFamily #FBI #Surveillance #MafiaHistory
Transcribe →From Smuggler to Redemption
Feb 17, 202500:51:17Tap to summarizeIn this gripping episode of Gangland Wire, Gary Jenkins sits down with Ted Pryor, a man whose life story is a rollercoaster of discipline, danger, and redemption. Ted’s journey begins in law enforcement, where his martial arts expertise earned him respect among police departments. But a fateful decision led him down a very different path—one that plunged him into the high-stakes world of South Florida smuggling. Ted recounts how a family member introduced him to the trade, starting with a seemingly simple marijuana operation. Before long, he found himself entangled in a dangerous underworld, rubbing shoulders with major players in Miami’s drug scene. As a bodyguard for a notorious trafficker, he balanced his life as a kickboxing champion with the risks of organized crime, struggling to reconcile these two identities. The stakes escalated when law enforcement finally caught up with him. Ted shares the harrowing details of a dramatic police chase and his courtroom battle to reclaim his future. His firsthand insights into the legal system, the pressures of incarceration, and the turning points that led him to change his life make for a compelling narrative. Ted has now dedicated himself to a new mission—helping at-risk youth break free from the cycle of crime. Through his foundation, he provides educational opportunities for underprivileged children, believing early intervention is key to keeping them off the streets. His story of transformation, resilience, and giving back is inspiring. Ted’s book, Three Times World Champ, chronicles his extraordinary life, with all proceeds supporting his charitable efforts. Tune in to hear how one man went from the depths of the drug trade to becoming a champion for change. Buy the book click here Three Times World Champ Subscribe to get new gangster stories every week. Hit me up on Venmo for a cup of coffee or a shot and a beer @ganglandwire Click here to “buy me a cup of coffee” To go to the store or make a donation or rent Ballot Theft: Burglary, Murder, Coverup, click here To rent Brothers against Brothers, the documentary, click here. To rent Gangland Wire, the documentary, click here To buy my Kindle book, Leaving Vegas: The True Story of How FBI Wiretaps Ended Mob Domination of Las Vegas Casinos. To subscribe on iTunes click here. Please give me a review and help others find the podcast. Donate to the podcast. Click here! Transcript [0:00] Well, hey, all you wiretapers, welcome back here in the studio of Gagland Wire. It’s great to have you back. I have a very interesting character, if you will, a guy that’s lived more lives than you could believe. You know, I’m Gary Jenkins, a retired Kansas City Police Intelligence Unit detective, and I have this podcast now, and I’ve been putting out these shows for about seven or eight years, guys, and I really appreciate all you guys that have been with me from the start. There’s several of you I know and I’ve gotten to know been with me from the start. So go on to my Facebook group or make comments on my YouTube page. And let me get to know a little more about each one of you, because I always respond to any kind of a comment on that or the Facebook page, Facebook group. So we have Ted Pryor. Ted, welcome. [0:48] Thank you, Gary. Thanks for having me on. Now, guys, Ted’s written a book. You know, I get a lot of authors on there. Saves me doing the research, Ted. I have to admit, it saves me doing a lot of research. You guys know your stuff. The name of the book is Three Times World Champ, the death-defying true story of a kickboxer turned drug smuggler turned business icon. And believe me, guys, that is J. Ted Pryor. What a hell of a story from the middleweight kickboxing champion of the world to world champion marijuana smuggler down in South Florida and right in the heart of drug smuggling territory, which is, you know, really carved out a niche down there. But later on, businessman and a chef. And I just don’t know, Ted, start telling us about yourself, kind of how you got going and where you’re at. [1:37] Gary, it’s interesting that you were in law enforcement and you retired as a detective. And, you know, I was in law enforcement my whole life as a young kid. I used to be, I used to be, when I was training, I became a black belt and started training to become a world champion kickboxer. And I used to train all the police departments in West Palm Beach. [1:58] And I was a tactical commander, teach them how to search and seizure, teach them how to cuff a guy, put him in a till cold without killing somebody. So I was very influential with the police departments in all of South Florida. And then I started teaching the DEA, FBI, Secret Service through a guy named Joe Hess, who was the heavyweight champion of the world. [2:18] So I was in law enforcement most of my young life, I would say from 17 to my mid-20s. [2:26] And as I was doing that, I got into the pot smuggling business. [2:33] I noticed one thing in your book, you became Elvis Presley’s bodyguard for a period of time. Yeah, I did. And I got that through Joe Hess as well. Interesting story. I was working at the police academy. I mean, I was number five in the world kickboxing champion in my division, which was a super middleweight championship. [2:50] Elvis Presley, Shelton Parker was a martial artist. And Elvis Presley did a little bit of martial arts when he went to the service. And not that he was good at it, but he just loved the martial arts and karate. And he liked the aspect of it. He became an honorary black belt. Shelton Parker was a big martial arts guy. And Elvis said he wanted the best. He wanted the world champion. So he reached out to Joe Hess. And I just won the world title as well. And he wanted us to bodyguard him so we had the privilege of bodyguard him for his last year of his life and it was fantastic because you know i was like 20 years old and i was the last of the defense me and joe for the women to get to him and it’d be a stage and i’ll tell you tell you a funny story is we’re at a concert and mostly women gorgeous women and we’d have about 20 guys in the front anybody that got past those guys had to come up to me and joe and we would put our arms around their waist and lay them down. And, you know, this one particular time, this girl had Elvis’s scarf and put it around my neck and started choking me as I was bringing her down to the floor. It was, you know, she was beautiful. I laid her down and she left the scarf on my neck. And I still have it to this day. And Elvis goes, how’d you get that scarf? I go, one of your fans tried to choke me. He goes, well, you earned it, keep it. [4:09] But it was a You know, we did it for about a year, and then we got a phone call one day that he passed, and it was kind of bad. But, you know, it was a great experience, and he was a great guy. And he was in his, you know, later years. He was very overweight, and, you know, he didn’t even like to be touched because he was perspiring so much. But overall, it was a great experience, and, you know, it was one of the most fabulous times of my life. I can only imagine traveling with the— All the beautiful 20-year-old women. And he had all the beautiful young girls and what they call his mafia. [4:44] Mafia, exactly. Elvis’ mafia, all his buddies, his entourage. He’d have a hell of an entourage traveling with him. And he bought everything for everybody. Hell, I understand he would go into a town. If he liked some cops, he might buy some cop a brand new car because he loved cops. Yep. It was nuts. Very generous guy. And he gave so much faith and so much trust in his manager. As we all know, he pretty much took all of his money and gambled it all away. And he was just a generous, beautiful person. So, Ted, how did you end up in the drug dealing business? I see. Well. I’m reading through this, and I see you started out at a young age. As many guys do, somebody said, hey, man, you want to make a run, make some really good money for just a little short run? Too good to be true. Yeah. So as I was training, I was working at a correctional counselor and guys coming out of state prison. I was called the CC1. And basically, they’d come out of prison. I’d find them jobs. And it was a work release camp. And it was getting them to basically get themselves back in and not just throw them on the street and have them go back to crime. [5:52] They had got a job. So I was a counselor. And now that was a counselor, my mom was like 47 years old and she had cancer, pancreatic cancer. And my brother and my sisters, they all smoked pot. I never did. When I found my brother’s pot, I’d throw it and flush it down the toilet because I was like a mini la...
Transcribe →The Presidents and the Mob
Feb 10, 202500:44:23Tap to summarizeIn this episode, retired Intelligence Unit detective Gary Jenkins talks with Eric Dezenhall, an author and former Reagan’s White House aide, about his new book, Wiseguys and the White House. Eric shares his unique perspective on the fascinating and often overlooked intersection of organized crime and American politics. His curiosity on the subject began with a seemingly casual remark from a colleague about mafia influence in his hometown of Cherry Hill, New Jersey. As a young aide in the Reagan administration, that moment set him on a path to explore how deeply organized crime has intertwined itself with the fabric of American society and government. Throughout the conversation, Eric discusses how perceptions of mobsters have shifted over the decades. In the early 20th century, gangsters were often seen as vital community figures. They provided services like gambling and liquor during Prohibition—illegal but in high demand—and were viewed as filling a societal need. By the 1970s, however, that image began to unravel. Organized crime became a symbol of decay, corruption, and violence, far removed from the Robin Hood-like aura it once carried. Eric brings to life the stories of legendary mob figures like Meyer Lansky, detailing Lansky’s surprising role during World War II. Lansky, alongside other organized crime figures, worked with the U.S. Navy to prevent Nazi sabotage along the East Coast. Eric explains how this alliance complicates the narrative of mobsters as purely criminal; during wartime, they were sometimes perceived as patriotic contributors to the national effort. Their involvement underscores the ambiguity surrounding these figures, who operated in both legitimate and illegal spheres. As the conversation moves into modern times, Eric discusses how organized crime continues to influence political and business landscapes. He points to figures like Donald Trump, who openly acknowledged the realities of navigating a business world shaped by organized crime in cities like New York. Eric also examines how presidents such as Reagan, Nixon, JFK, and Joe Biden managed relationships with organized crime—relationships that, while morally complex, often played a role in advancing their careers and shaping American politics in lasting ways. This episode offers a compelling look at the intersection of crime, politics, and history through Eric Dezenhall’s sharp insights and years of research. By sharing stories of infamous mobsters and pivotal historical moments, Eric reveals a side of organized crime that is often forgotten: its influence on the nation’s leadership and its occasional alignment with patriotic causes. It’s a conversation that challenges our assumptions, blending history, politics, and crime into a nuanced and captivating narrative. Ger Eric’s books. See other books by clicking here. Transcript [0:00] Well, hey, welcome, all you wiretappers. Glad to be back here in studio of Gangland Wire. This is Gary Jenkins, retired Kansas City Police Intelligence Detective, a later sergeant, and I have in the studio today a prolific mob author and a guy that’s written with, I know you guys know, Gus Russo and the outfit book in Chicago. Well, this is a contemporary of Gus Russo, Eric Dezenhall. Eric, I really appreciate you coming in and sharing your stories about the wise guys in the White House with my wiretappers here. Thanks very much for having me. And I won’t say too many things about Gus, given that I talk to him every day. And I don’t want to have to face him. So I’ll be kind. Yeah, he’s a good guy. I interviewed him once. I got to get him back on. You know, there’s a lot of new books coming out all the time. But I need to get him back on because he’s so knowledgeable. So we’re not here to talk about Gus Russo. We’re here to talk about wise guys in the White House, which is probably kind of topical right now. The White House has been more topical in the last, what, eight years or so than [1:03] it’s ever been in my entire 79 years. It’s just crazy. But first of all, Eric, tell the guys a little bit about your past writing. You have a whole bunch of books. And so tell the guys a little bit about your story through the last 10, 15 years. [1:18] Well, I’ve written 12 books. This is my 12th. [1:22] My fiction tends to deal with organized crime. My nonfiction deals also with organized crime. My last book actually was with Gus Russo called Best of Enemies, and it was the true story of two spies, a CIA guy and a KGB guy, who were assigned to flip each other, but they ended up becoming best friends and bringing down the worst traitor in American history, the FBI’s Robert Hansen. I had done a historical novel. I’ve known some of Meyer Lansky’s family much of my life and had access to a lot of his records. And I did a historical novel called The Devil Himself about his role with Luciano during World War II. and I fictionalized it, even though it is a factual story. I used the basis of fact to tell the story of Lansky because of so much of what I learned about what he emotionally wanted out of the World War II project, as well as the Navy commander. I mean, I’m not really a creature of the mob, even though I grew up around it. I’m more of a creature of Washington, where I’ve lived for 40 years. And what was interesting to me about the World War II story was not just the mob, but the naval officer who took the risk of working with the mob. And it’s one of those things where classic Washington story, you take a risk, you’re told to win, and when you win. [2:49] Then everybody goes, oh my God, this guy worked with mobsters, which they knew, and then what happened to his career, which was devastating. [2:57] So I’ve been very interested in the myths and realities of World War II. And the new book, Wise Guys in the White House, this has been cooking for about 40 years. I was a young aide in Reagan’s White House. Yeah. [3:11] I tell the story at the beginning of the book where on one of my first days i told my boss she said where do you live where you’re from and i said i’m from cherry hill new jersey there was a big mob war at the time uh when angelo bruno had been killed in march of 1980 and my boss said uh oh cherry hill that’s that’s big mafia and i said well yeah the gambinos lived there they were my neighbors and uh but muhammad ali lived there too and she and one of the people said well you know the mob killed JFK. And I said, what are you talking about? Oh, they run the country. I said, we’re 20 feet from the Oval Office. Where are you? Do you know these guys? Where are you getting this? And it’s stuck with me for 40 years. And finally, enough files came out, enough people were willing to talk that I thought I had a book in the history of the presidency in organized crime, what really did happen, what didn’t happen, what people think happened that didn’t happen. And the bottom line is there have been extensive dealings going back to the FDR administration with organized crime. But it’s not like the president at three in the morning is inviting mobsters [4:25] into the Oval Office and then they’re tiptoeing out. It’s much more attenuated, but it’s very, very real. [4:33] Yeah, it’s it’s much more sophisticated or or like so many different cutouts. The president never talks to, you know, Carlo Gambino or John Gotti or any of these guys. But these guys talk to their local politician who then has a connection to the larger party, maybe on a state level. And then on a state level, then they end up maybe up with the with the attorney general or something. I think the Chicago, uh, the, the, uh, Chicago film, uh, scandal where the, the Chicago outfit guys, Paul Reek and some of them got out of prison early out of Leavenworth early with Harry Truman’s help. Right. With, with his, his, uh, uh, uh, attorney general, Tom Clark’s help. And Truman had to know that that was going on, but Truman was owed his career to Pendergast. So it, in, in a, you know, indirect way. So it’s, you know, that’s, that’s just how it works. [5:31] That’s right. And we, you know, with Harry Truman, I mean, a lot of people, everybody knows that he came from a political machine, but they don’t know that it was a mafia controlled machine, not just a political machine, the Lazio family. And you hear you had a person who was selected by a mafia machine who ended up becoming president of the United States. And of course, dropped the bomb on Japan. Did the mob have anything to do with that? No. But it’s amazing to think that history turned on a president that was, in fact, selected with the help of organized crime. And Truman, interestingly, is not unlike Trump in the sense that he admitted that to a large degree, his dealings with the mob. And I think one of the things we’ll talk about is the extent to which some people, everything was about the appearance of respectability. Nobody cared if they did business with the mob. They cared about it coming out. And Truman was oddly candid over his career about it. He wasn’t completely candid. And I think one of the things we’ll get to is what’s been interesting about Donald Trump, as only Trump can do, he will co...
Transcribe →Big Apple Mafia: Stories From the Five Families
Feb 6, 2025Tap to summarizeIn this bonus episode, Gary Jenkins tells about how the FBI recruited the man known as “The Grim Reaper” or the “Killing machine.” It might surprise some that they recruited Greg Scarpa Sr. before Joe Valachi gave his public testimony. From the time of Scarpa’s earliest arrests by the FBI, he sang like a bird. Additionally, Gary tells about Scarpa Jr. and Senior joining in murdering a mobster girlfriend or “Goomar” named Mari Bari. Colombo boss Alphonse “Allie Boy” Persico feared she would reveal his whereabouts when he was on the lam from the FBI. Scarpa’s people will call this “the murder he is going to hell for.” Additionally, Gary Jenkins asks for your help with his new and captivating book inspired by his podcast episodes. Big Apple Mafia: Stories From the Five Families delves into New York City’s organized crime scene, beginning with legendary Mafia detective Joe Petrosino and key moments from his remarkable career. As with his first book, Windy City Mafia: Stories From the Chicago Outfit, Gary handpicks some of his favorite stories, crafting a compelling ten-chapter collection. Readers will explore tales of Lt. Petrosino and the Black Hand, Frank Costello—The Gentleman Gangster, the notorious Crazy Joey Gallo, the ruthless Tommy “Karate” Pitera, and Gary’s personal favorite, John Gotti’s Mole, and five more. Written in his signature direct and engaging style, this book is a must-read for true crime enthusiasts. Subscribe to get new gangster stories every week. Hit me up on Venmo for a cup of coffee or a shot and a beer @ganglandwire Click here to “buy me a cup of coffee” To go to the store or make a donation or rent Ballot Theft: Burglary, Murder, Coverup, click here To rent Brothers against Brothers, the documentary, click here. To rent Gangland Wire, the documentary, click here To buy my Kindle book, Leaving Vegas: The True Story of How FBI Wiretaps Ended Mob Domination of Las Vegas Casinos. To subscribe on iTunes click here. Please give me a review and help others find the podcast. Donate to the podcast. Click here! Transcript [0:00] Well, hey, all you wiretappers out there, Gary Jenkins, Kansas City Police Intelligence [0:04] Unit Detective in the past. I have been at it again. I have written my second book based on my podcast episodes. My second book is called Big Apple Mafia, Stories from the Five Families. Now, I’m going to tell many mob stories from a podcast. [0:20] Big Apple Mafia is going to be a little bit longer than Windy City Mafia, the Chicago outfit. It’s got 160 pages. So my best stories, I really love a lot of these stories. like the one about Gotti’s mole, the New York City policeman who was feeding him information all the time in that investigation, how they uncovered that guy. And really everything from the overview in the early days, Abe Rellis, the canary that could sing but couldn’t fly, and all those old stories. So this new book is only $2.99 as a Kindle. And remember, the reason I’m doing this is for Amazon to put that book out on other people. When you go to Amazon, then if you’re a mob book reader, then we want this book to be put in front of all those mob book readers, whether they’re podcast listeners or not, of course. And if you want to help me with that, I kind of game the algorithms. It seems to work a little bit. They monitor the purchases or the pages read and the reviews, so give me a review also. So, and this helped out immensely with my Chicago book. So once again, I’m asking you for basically a small $2.99 donation and you’ll get the book in return, the Kindle book, or it’s a little more for the, I can’t remember how much it is for the, for the, uh. [1:40] Paperback and, and so anyhow, don’t forget to give me a review and as reward for listening to this little sales pitch, here’s a great story about Greg Scarpa senior, AKA the grim reaper, or as I’ve learned, the name he really preferred was a killing machine or just km this guy was a real piece of work man i mean he was a real piece of piece of work he was he played chess while everybody else was playing checkers it seems to me like so listen to my story and don’t forget go to amazon and click on you know search gary jenkins, mafia books and you’ll find my books and buy that 299 kindle book and give me a review on it it’s called uh not windy city mafia one of my it’s called big apple mafia stories from the five families so listen up guys you know he’s got the usual thing as a young thug he ended up doing truck hijackings and the mob guys saw that and that’s where you fence your property if you do a truck hijacking large amounts of property. [2:42] In 1960, FBI agents arrested him for hijacking. And another one hijacking, when they arrested him, they served a search warrant on his house and they found several cases of liquor taken from a more recent hijacking. Well, it was during that time in August of 1960 that the FBI opened their first informant file on him. And, you know, think about this, this is three years before Valachi does his testimony. He got that three years before Bellacci talks. I mean, Bellacci has come in by now, but this is three years before he actually gives his public testimony and people know about him. Greg Scarpa Sr., who’s going to get into the Profaci, then Colombo family, is talking to the FBI. And they dismiss the charges on the first hijacker. And then they drop him shortly after that because his brother was involved with this and and he won’t talk about his brother which is pretty common you know that’s that’s a bit much to ask of a guy but you know i noticed in the book i was reading about this is a really good book about this uh the greg scarper and his whole life that the charges were never refiled. [3:52] The book says agents kept dropping by a social club where he frequented and and all the time and they tried to talk to him all the time. And so much that guys started to talk. And he finally, they said he begged the agents, you know, you got to stop this. Guys are starting to talk. Oh, that book, by the way, is Deal with the Devil. There it is. It’s thick too. It’s a big, thick book. Peter Lance. I think it’s really good now. Now there’s another book about him that mentions him a lot by this FBI agent, Len DiVecchio. [4:23] And DiVecchio was one of his. [4:26] Two guys that we know that ran him as an informant and i tell you what he i in my opinion from what i’ve read they were playing he was playing those guys all along well he did work for him i mean he did do work but he he was using it to uh to get himself promoted in the mob and and earn more money and and all that and and in 1962 they actually early on they gave him top echelon informant status, which is a pretty big deal. And what they said, there was a Profaci-Gallo war going on at that time, and they said he could furnish information on that. They really wanted to know about that. That other liquor hijacking case was dismissed during that time. In early 1962, there was an FBI report in which an unidentified agent describes Scarpa as a reliable and emotionally stable person, and that he has never furnished any false information. And the subsequent memos that they started writing early on his information was much better and more detailed and more about crimes than anything joe velacci ever talked about joe velacci got in there and talked to old history and and he explained a lot that that they didn’t know you know like the the capos and the bosses and and the families and how they were separate and and how they they They worked together and all those kinds of things. The induction ceremony, Scarpa was reported on current events. [5:55] Bureau at that time calls him a capital regime. Now, he’s a little bit young for that. I think they wanted to boost him up a little bit and make him look like he’s more important. But they did say, and this turns out to be true, he was really close to the profetiae. [6:08] Family concierge, Charles LoCicero. They also claimed that Scarpa Sr. Was a bookmaker and a gambler and nothing else, no kind of truck hijackings or murders or loom sharking or anything like that. He was just a bookmaker and a gambler, clean money. And they said that he agreed that he would advance in the Profaci family if they asked him to. So he was like, right there, he tells them, I’ll do this. I mean, I’ll go on in the family and try to get in to a higher position and into more mafia activities, but if you want me to, I mean, just think about this guy. He was good. He was always asking for money to cover old debts, and he wanted a regular stipend. Now, I did learn that they paid him $125 a month, but they often gave him large amount...
Transcribe →The Last Days of John Gotti
Feb 3, 202500:54:51Tap to summarizeRetired KCPD Intelligence Unit Detective Gary Jenkins takes listeners inside the Federal Prison Hospital at Springfield and the final days of John Gotti’s life. Former inmate Mark Black wrote Black Truth: The Last Days of Gotti. He takes us back to his early days in the prison system, recounting his initial charge and transfer to the Springfield Federal Medical Center. There, he forged profound relationships with high-profile mafia members, gaining rare insights into their lives, codes, and the unspoken rules governing their world. Among these encounters, his time with Greg DePalma and John Gotti of the Gambino family stands out. Mark shares vivid stories of their mutual respect and the deep conversations that revealed Greg’s storied past, including connections to infamous figures like Tony Ducks and Fat Tony. Through these aging mobsters, Mark paints a fascinating picture of how street reputations followed them into prison, where they exchanged tales of past glories and upheld the mafia’s sacred code of honor. The episode also explores Mark’s interactions with John Gotti, offering a unique glimpse into the infamous mob boss’s life behind bars. Mark delivered meals and kites (messages) for Gotti as a prison orderly. He tells about the stark contrast between Gotti’s outward bravado and the signs of stress and resignation from solitary confinement. Mark Black became Gotti’s “eyes and ears” in the prison outside his solitary confinement. Tensions rise as Mark delves into the story of a proposed hit on Nicky LaSorsa. He recounts the volatile dynamics of trust and betrayal, particularly involving a convicted drug kingpin, Jose Reyes, who sought to manipulate alliances and set up John Gotti Jr. and Greg DePalma for an early release from several life sentences. Mark’s role as an intermediary in these dangerous scenarios highlights the precarious balance between loyalty and treachery that defines the mafia lifestyle. Through these gripping accounts, Mark offers listeners an insider’s view of the unyielding nature of mob loyalty and the ever-present risks of living by its code. Subscribe to get new gangster stories every week. Hit me up on Venmo for a cup of coffee or a shot and a beer @ganglandwire Click here to “buy me a cup of coffee” To go to the store or make a donation or rent Ballot Theft: Burglary, Murder, Coverup, click here To rent Brothers against Brothers, the documentary, click here. To rent Gangland Wire, the documentary, click here To buy my Kindle book, Leaving Vegas: The True Story of How FBI Wiretaps Ended Mob Domination of Las Vegas Casinos. To subscribe on iTunes click here. Please give me a review and help others find the podcast. Donate to the podcast. Click here! Transcript [0:00] Well, hey, all you Wiretappers, welcome back here to the studio of Gangland Wire. This is Gary Jenkins, retired Kansas City Police Intelligence Unit Sergeant, and I have an interesting guy. He has a book, of course. You know, a lot of my guys have books. Where’s that book? Oh, The Last Days of Gotti. You might want to check that book out. It’s very well written. I’ll assure you that. Mark D. Black. Mark, welcome. I really appreciate you coming on the show. Well, thank you, Gary. Now, Mark, as I’ve gone through this book, you you’re like my friend, Steve St. John, who I have some other shows with many of my regular fans will know that name. And you were an orderly down in Springfield and the federal hospital and the prison hospital down there. Now, how did you even end up in the federal prison system? I guess is my first question. [0:51] Well, I was charged with drugs and firearms violation, and I got seven years in state and then the feds. And then when I got done with my state sentence, I went to the feds and did some time at El Reno in Oklahoma City. And then when I was timing out, they decided to send me to Springfield Federal Medical Center to work to take care of the sick inmates. [1:17] Yeah, they have a bunch of those guys. I’ve seen pictures of old Tony Ducks Carollo and fat Tony Slerno. And there’s these old guys are just sitting there in their wheelchairs and they can’t really get around. They can’t do anything. So, so you were the guy that helped them out. Yeah. Well, Greg Palma, that’s who I knew at first. And that, that was what happened the first day, you know, I was an orderly on his unit. He asked me to push him to Catholic mass. And so I pushed him to Catholic mass and he asked me to, push him to the back and there was an old man sitting back there also in a wheelchair, and they talked through the whole mass uh the catholic mass the whole time and it was kind of disrespectful but you know everybody just let him do it and then when he got out he told me that that was tony ducks corella that he was talking to and that they had been really good friends and he said that they uh tony had had some problems with john at one time but all was forgiven and they were friends uh and then i’d see him i’d see him with uh tony at mass every once in a while but tony was on another unit so so you got to know greg de palma pretty well as my if i remember right. [2:29] Yeah. When I got on the unit, I was on his unit for quite a while, like almost a year and a half. And one of the ways that we got to be friends is that I was a gopher for the guard there. And I had a schedule down and he wanted and I would take smoke breaks in the bathroom. You weren’t supposed to do that. But Greg DePalma asked me if he could ride in the car. [2:53] So we started doing smoke breaks in the bathroom on his unit. And uh when that when i knew the guard wasn’t available and we got to know each other like that and he started you know after about a couple of months he started telling me stories about uh about himself so he’s this is a guy that is born and bred in the new york city mafia and you know he rose to a pretty high level and he lived that life so how did that translate inside the penitentiary system did he have you know where he had guys other guys that were there that gave him a certain respect did you see that you know if you think about the well one of the things you know when i first met greg you know i was an orderly there and he said that i could put my my belongings in his room that nobody would steal him and he was one of the guys would leave his cigarettes laying out on his bed which showed that like he had like a lot of respect and people kind of feared him in there but not he didn’t really you know i was when i first got there i started playing chess with this guy named Curtis and he was a pimp. And he also knew Greg from the outside, but he told me that Greg really didn’t speak to anybody besides I was the first guy that he had ever really spoke to, um, uh, and hung around with besides his mafia friends. [4:12] And so Greg, he was pretty secretive, uh, until, until I met him and he didn’t really talk to hardly anybody. Did he bring the, he brought the kind of the mafia code into the penitentiary. Could you see that? [4:26] How did that play itself out? [4:30] Well, you know, one of the reasons I wrote this book was because, uh, um, you know, I didn’t really think about too much when I first got out, I was trying to rebuild my life. But one of the things that when I was looking up the stuff he had told me, he told me that he dated Elizabeth Taylor, which I didn’t believe. Um, you know, he had talked, he’d talk about, uh, his time at the West Chester premier theater that he ran. Um one time he came down the uh the hallway waving a newspaper rag that had frank sinatra you know him uh i guess big paulie and some of the other friends and he was telling me that that was his baby and then he and he and he told me that kind of stuff like that and then one of the things when i started looking this up i found this uh interview by jack falcone and he was a fbi agent that had infiltrated Greg’s crew. And, you know, he made him to look like a kind of a bumbling, comical character, which just didn’t sit right with me. [5:29] Greg, it was kind of like, you know, Tony Montana in the movies where he said, all I’ve got is my word and my balls, and I don’t bust them for anybody. And that was Greg De Palma. And he lived that life fully. He was fully committed to the mafia and this thing of theirs. And he was loyal to a fault. I mean, all these guys that I hung out with, they, they were, they were fully committed to, uh, this, uh, this thing of theirs is that’s what they called it. Did they seem to express any regret for getting all this time? No, they didn’t actually. They, they saw that that was part of the part of doing business. One of the, you know, some of the regrets that, um, that Greg had, I heard that, uh, Sam Cagnini told me when he, you know, like I said, I played chess in the orderlies. [6:17] Common area. And I got to know Sam Cagnetti through G...
Transcribe →Bobby Boriello
Jan 8, 202500:12:18Tap to summarizeIn this episode, retired intelligence unit detective Gary Jenkins examines the life of Bobby Boriello, a key figure in the Gambino crime family and closely associated with John Gotti. I explore Boriello’s beginnings in South Brooklyn and his ascent as an enforcer for the Gallo gang, detailing his numerous criminal activities and connections that allowed him to evade serious consequences. This show covers his involvement in significant events, such as the assassination of Paul Castellano and the tensions with the Genovese family. I reflect on the violent and tumultuous nature of his life, culminating in his murder in 1991, which highlights the inherent dangers of organized crime. As Borrello’s story unfolds, I delve into the themes of loyalty, betrayal, and power dynamics within the Mafia, offering personal insights and humor. This will be the last episode until February. The next episode will host Mark Black, who tells about his life in the Federal prison hospital in Springfield and his care of John Gotti as he battled cancer and other mobster’s plots. Subscribe to get new gangster stories every week. Hit me up on Venmo for a cup of coffee or a shot and a beer @ganglandwire Click here to “buy me a cup of coffee” To go to the store or make a donation, click here To rent Ballto Theft: Burglary Murder Coverup, click here To rent Brothers against Brothers, the documentary, click here. To rent Gangland Wire, the documentary, click here To buy my Kindle book, Leaving Vegas: The True Story of How FBI Wiretaps Ended Mob Domination of Las Vegas Casinos. To subscribe on iTunes, click here. Please give me a review and help others find the podcast. Donate to the podcast. Click here! [0:00] A little story about Bobby Boriello, who was a Gambino soldier and a big moneymaker [0:05] for the Gotti family and the Gambino family. You want to call it the Gotti family or the Gambino family? It never did become the Gotti family, did it? Much to John Gotti’s chagrin, I’m sure. Anyhow, this is going to be the last one for the month of January. I’m going to take some time off. I’m going to take a little vacation. And I’ve been working pretty hard at doing my books. And I’ve done a couple of books, a New York book and the Chicago book. And I’m getting set for the next year, doing some other things this next year. So I’ll get back to putting one out at least every week at the last of January. I know the one I’ve already got it set that we’re going to come back into like, I think the last Monday or Sunday in January is going to be a guy named Mark Black, who was in the penitentiary in Springfield, the hospital, federal hospital down there. With John Gotti and some other guys. And he got all embroiled in some. [1:02] Some mafia drama, carrying messages from one person to the other. And, and so anyhow, it’s a really interesting story. It’ll be a great one to come back to. So I hope you guys all had a Merry Christmas and a happy new year. I’m not very good at wishing people all that kind of stuff before I forget about it. I just put out podcasts. That’s all I do. You know, me, I’m just a plain guys. Guys, come on back in February. Hey, all you wiretappers out there. Glad to be back here in the studio. Glad to have you in the studio with me. This is Gary Jenkins, retired Kansas City Police Intelligence Detective and now podcasters. Most of y’all know. If you don’t, why keep listening. You’ll learn who I am [1:43] and what I’m about. I have a lot of fun doing this. Going back to New York today, guys, going to Bobby Borrello. [1:50] Bobby Boriello was a gaudy guy, if you remember right. He probably is one of the trigger men on the Castellano hit. Now, going way on back, he grew up in South Brooklyn, and he grew up in a neighborhood that was dominated by several mob families, Gambino, Genovese, and the Columbo crime families. He was surrounded by mobsters from, you know, from the time he was a little kid. His younger brother, Stevie, was close to Crazy Joe Gallo and Albert Gallo and Frank Ileano. Um steve played a role in getting gallows crew uh really ensconced in south brooklyn and and their rackets down there and he brought bobby in and he was really he was a big kid and he got a reputation pretty quick as an enforcer within the gallow gang but he moved on beyond that Now, between 1967, 1972. [2:49] His rap sheet grew considerably. He was arrested six times from weapons possession to assault, larceny, gambling, the usual stuff, you know. No matter what, he didn’t go to jail, and his criminal career advanced. Didn’t go to jail. Bobby Boriello didn’t go to jail because he became important to different mafia guys, and they got those political connections. By the 1980s, he will become a made man in the Gambino family. [3:18] And what’s interesting is Mikey Scars DiLeonardo will talk about being inducted by Sammy the Bull Gravano with Junior Gotti, and because John Gotti did not want it to look bad, did not want him, he to make his own son, he didn’t think it looked good, Bobby Borrello will be inducted in that same ceremony with Mikey Scars and Junior Gotti. He really will have strong ties with all these guys, John Gotti, Sammy the Bull, Nicholas and Jojo Carrozzo. Borrello will be seen with Gotti quite a little bit. They were like friends. They’ll spend weekends on Long Island gambling and partying and going to performances and just, you know, general social things as well as the business. Bobby Borrello conducted most of his business as he got, you know, after he became a made guy at the one over a golf club. It was in Carroll Gardens in New York. It was a social club. It was operated by a paraplegic gangster named Joe Pitts. It’s Joe Pitts Corneliaro. This dude was involved in loan sharking and gambling. He’ll eventually be killed. These guys, there’s constant danger surrounding them. Constantly, they’re in danger. During his early years in the Gambino family, and even before, he was suspected of being involved in more than one murder. That gives him a hell of a reputation out there. [4:44] Uh, other criminal activities are extorted, the usual extortion, loan sharking and drug trafficking. And, you know, he really had a good solid status within the Gambino family. He could take care of business. He could make money. He could do what needed to be done. And, you know, the Gambino’s under Gotti, they didn’t mind dealing. [5:02] They didn’t mind taking that drug money. You know, he was also part of junior Gotti’s crew when John Gotti promoted his son to Capo and Sammy, the bull wanted that done for some reason this crew had some guys jackie cavallo charlie cornelia tommy twits cassia polly and dominic fat dom borghese he was involved you know all over new york city and particularly south brooklyn worked with anthony toto anastasio and some other guys like that you know he was involved with the eventually become involved with the trucking construction loan sharking because that’s what gambinos do they were in trucking construction and loan sharking as well as gambling and hijacking and all the usual things late 1980s he got into the world of strip clubs like i noticed in kansas city they did the same thing later on they started getting into strip clubs there’s a guy named steve kaplan who was paying tribute to him and junior gotti for different strip clubs all up down the east coast so he really and And, and, and Michael. [6:09] Mikey scars was involved in that one down in, uh, extorting money from that one down in, uh, uh, Atlanta, Georgia. [6:16] So these guys, you know, really reached out with their strip clubs as he rose up in the ranks, his most powerful ally was junior Gotti. [6:24] And, and he was actually junior Gotti named him a boss over some other guys and his crew and December, 1990, after John Gotti senior was indicted, he created a five man ruling panel over the Gambino family and Junior is part of that. Bobby Borelli, you know, is operating alongside of him and operating his rackets out of his Brooklyn Social Club. John Gotti. [6:48] Ordered Borelli to eliminate a guy named Louis De Bono, who was a Gambino soldier who had gotten a really lucrative contract to install fireproofing foam in the Twin Towers. After De Bono’s death, Borelli takes care of Louis De Bono. Sammy Gravano, Sammy the Bull, takes over that business and kind of a lot of tensions in the family over that. Borelli tried to kill a Genovese crime family associate named Preston Geritano in Brooklyn on the street. The hit failed. It led to like a kind of a negotiation between the Genovese and Canvino crime families, which they do that. And in the end, Gertano was allowed to live, but he can’t try to get revenge against Borrello, Bobby Borrello. Bobby Borrello’s luck will run out April 13th, 1991. [7:43] Killed him right in front of his house in Bensonhur...
Transcribe →36 Rules of Mafia Bosses
Jan 6, 202500:58:23Tap to summarizeIn this Gangland Wire episode, host Gary Jenkins sits down with RJ Roger, Host of No Excuses with Michael DiLeonardo podcast, to delve into his fascinating book, The Don: 36 Rules of the Bosses. In this book, RJ outlines 36 leadership rules derived from effective leaders’ behaviors in organized crime and corporate America. These rules, rooted in extensive historical research on the five New York mafia families, highlight universal power dynamics in all hierarchical structures, offering actionable insights for anyone striving to succeed—whether as a business executive or an everyday worker. RJ challenges the romanticized portrayal of mob life, focusing instead on the stark realities of leadership within the mafia. Together, Gary and RJ draw parallels between the underworld and legitimate organizations. For example, RJ discusses the principle of “using skilled men to your benefit,” a lesson that applies across industries—including Gary’s experience in law enforcement. Both mafia bosses, police commanders, and corporate leaders face the challenge of navigating human dynamics, where the rules of engagement can make or break their success. Throughout the conversation, RJ shares captivating stories of mob bosses and their relationships with underlings, shedding light on the nuances of leadership. The discussion touches on the importance of appearances, with RJ explaining how a leader’s presentation can shape perception and loyalty among followers. He emphasizes the delicate balance of being approachable and authoritative to maintain command—an insight that resonates across fields. Please tune in to this thought-provoking episode to uncover the leadership lessons from the mafia that can inspire and guide us in our endeavors. Subscribe to get new gangster stories every week. Hit me up on Venmo for a cup of coffee or a shot and a beer @ganglandwire Click here to “buy me a cup of coffee” To go to the store or make a donation, click here To rent Ballto Theft: Burglary Murder Coverup, click here To rent Brothers against Brothers, the documentary, click here. To rent Gangland Wire, the documentary, click here To buy my Kindle book, Leaving Vegas: The True Story of How FBI Wiretaps Ended Mob Domination of Las Vegas Casinos. To subscribe on iTunes, click here. Please give me a review and help others find the podcast. Donate to the podcast. Click here! Transcript Speaker1: [0:00] Well, hey, all you wiretappers out there. Good to be back here in studio of Gangland Wire. This is Gary Jenkins, retired Kansas City Police Intelligence Unit detective and later sergeant. I’m back here with another guest, an author and a fellow mob podcaster, RJ Roger. Welcome, RJ. Speaker0: [0:17] Thank you for having me, Gary. And I mean that this is not just camera stuff. I always wanted to have a discussion with you. I remember reaching out to you on Twitter once over before I even started working with Michael. And I just, as a respecter of what you do, because you have an elegant, classy podcast and in what we do, it ain’t the norm. So I’m a major respecter. Speaker1: [0:41] Well thank you thank you i i kind of back i didn’t understand that twitter thing back there but i have some vague memory that i don’t know anyhow well finally we meet and we just had a nice little discussion about mutual mutual woes in the podcast industry and personal uh personal things to get to know each other a little bit and guys uh i assure you rj knows what he’s talking about and he’s a true gentleman and he has a great podcast you know uh you know i’m the one i have to take credit for this, RJ. I’m the one that got Mikey scars or Michael D. Leonardo on the air the very first time by happenstance and luck in a way I find out, but then I knew it was, it was just a lucky just somehow he just felt a certain way one day and he said, yeah, I’ll come on your podcast. And now RJ has Mikey scars or Michael D. Leonardo on his podcast regularly. So you want to check that podcast out. Uh, tell us just a little bit about your podcast, RJ, so guys can find it Speaker0: [1:40] But you are right i always get i always take the credit i brought michael scars out of the shadows yeah and i got that line from um coast of notion news that was like his headline he said rj roger brings michael de leonardo from the shadows and but the truth is you were the first guy to have to do a discussion with him i just so you took the Speaker0: [2:03] the ball up the field and i took it over the you. Speaker1: [2:06] Took it over the goal line Speaker0: [2:07] Um so as far as the show with michael and i i was a original was doing a solo mob podcast and i made a production i made a show on michael and it made its way to him through his son he liked it he reached out to me we became friends so that’s a fast forward very fast way of how we met and for the first several months We were just friends. I met him in person. I flew out to see him. We spent some time together. And we were kind of… Talking about some different things. And eventually we came together and made an agreement on working together. Took him a while to want to come out and do like a long form show. But, but again, it wasn’t our relationships, not a business relate. It wasn’t a business relationship. We were friends that started a show. We wasn’t business guys that became friends. We were friends first and then started the show. So we’re at, we’re on YouTube. Speaker0: [3:07] You can search Mikey Scars Find our show Our YouTube show We’re primarily on Patreon now Same name, Mikey Scars We do 8 shows a month on Patreon And it’s been We’ve done a lot of really good stuff We talk about a lot of things in his life And he goes back In my opinion, the last live and made, Major Five family figure that’s out there His name goes back to Sicily over 100 years He has a long, long history He’s three, four generations deep inside of Cosa Nostra. So it’s been fun to talk with a guy who has so much understanding of the life in a more nuanced way. Speaker1: [3:47] Yeah, he really does. And he’s articulate enough that he can really, as you say, a nuanced way, he can tell the story. And so, you know, now you’ve done this book here, The Don, 36 Rules of the Boss. Speaker1: [4:03] R.J. Roger. Now, is this your first book? I’m not sure. I can’t remember. Speaker0: [4:08] Yes, it’s my first official book. That’s a major release book, traditional published book, first one. Speaker1: [4:16] Didn’t you tell me that you also used some stuff from Michael in your book to help explain some of these rules of the boss? Because he’s got firsthand knowledge of that. That’s not like just reading it from somebody else who got it from somebody else. He’s got firsthand knowledge of working with a boss. Speaker0: [4:35] Now, the first, the 30, so what I had done, I wrote the 36 rules before I even met Michael, years and years before I met Michael. That was really, I had this theory on 36 rules of a mafia don, of a boss, just a boss, not a captain or underboss. I looked at, you know, the history of the American mob bosses in the five families. And I’ve researched their whole life, like the social behavior study, essentially. And I didn’t look at the mafia for what they claim to be. We’re honored society. We only kill our own. We don’t deal in drugs. We don’t touch a boss. You’re untouchable. You can’t kill without permission. All the stuff that they claim to be, that’s not these 36 rules because a lot of that is. Speaker0: [5:22] Fluff. It’s not real. So I looked at their actual behaviors. Like what did they actually do? How did they actually treat people? Were they truly an honored society? So I looked at their history and what I found is 36 common things that you could find among the leaders of the five families. So I wrote that theory. That theory that I completed was what I was taking around. Michael didn’t, I didn’t even know Michael yet, that theory. And then when I met my agent and producer, he said, you know, we need to do more storytelling and give more examples so readers can understand how these rules are applied. So we began to re-edit the book and re-craft the book. And that’s what you have here. And some of Michael’s quotes and a couple of things he said, I used in some of the historical narratives that I put in the book. But largely, I met Michael late down the line. I was done with the book, really. I put a couple of quotes and things in, but I met Michael when the book was already completed. Even this version of it. Speaker1: [6:26] You know, I’m looking at some of these rules, like use a skilled man ...
Transcribe →The Mafia Opens Its Books
Jan 1, 2025Tap to summarizeIn this bonus episode, retired police intelligence unit detective Gary Jenkins looks into a fascinating New York Times article from March 21, 1976, that sheds light on a pivotal moment in the Mafia’s history—reopening their membership rosters after nearly two decades. This marked a significant turning point for the five Mafia families, where they were again allowed to induct new members into their ranks. I discuss how this decision was made cautiously, with each family permitted to initiate only ten new members, ensuring that those chosen were proven loyal and financially savvy operatives who could withstand the challenges of Mafia life. As I analyze the shifts in power dynamics and the emergence of new figures, I point to key players such as Carmine Galante, whose ambitions peaked when he returned to the scene following a lengthy prison sentence. I provide insights into how the old guard of Mafia leadership began to decline, making way for fresh ambition and new strategies, particularly in narcotics. The interplay of rivalry, loyalty, and the ever-present financial machinations within the families illustrates the complexity of Mafia politics as they sought to adapt and thrive amid evolving criminal enterprises. Subscribe to get new gangster stories every week. Hit me up on Venmo for a cup of coffee or a shot and a beer @ganglandwire Click here to “buy me a cup of coffee” To go to the store or make a donation or rent Ballot Theft: Burglary, Murder, Coverup, click here To rent Brothers against Brothers, the documentary, click here. To rent Gangland Wire, the documentary, click here To buy my Kindle book, Leaving Vegas: The True Story of How FBI Wiretaps Ended Mob Domination of Las Vegas Casinos. To subscribe on iTunes click here. Please give me a review and help others find the podcast. Donate to the podcast. Click here! Transcript [0:00] Well, hey, all you wiretappers out there, glad to be back here in Studio Gangland Wire. I’ve got a little bonus episode, I think. I don’t know how long it’s going to be, but not too long. Steve Popkin, the fan of the podcast, sent me a link to a New York Times article. Actually, it was out of the New York Times archives. They have an archive that you can access. It was dated March 21st, 1976, and the title was Five Mafia Families Opened Rosters to New Members. Well, this is back when they opened the books, finally. We hear a lot about that. The books were closed. The books were opened. They opened the books in 1976. There’s a lot of guys who were made right after that. [0:43] It’s hard to figure out who they all are. It’ll take a lot of time, but you all know who was made in 1976, 1977, during those years would have been right after the books were opened back up. They had to get the commission to approve of that, and there was five families [1:02] on the commission at the time. I assume Chicago probably was, but since it was a New York deal, they probably just kept it within New York mob bosses to vote on whether they would open up the books again. Now, in this article, I bet when they read this, some of these guys read this article, they were about to shit because here’s their business right down on the street. And I know they read those articles. I’ve got a wiretap where Nick Savella is reading an article or actually Tuffy DeLuna is reading an article to him where the, I believe it was the Wall Street Journal, was saying that Iupa was moving out west and moving into Las Vegas. And Nick Civella says, oh, boy. [1:49] And anyhow, so, you know, I know they read this stuff and they pay attention to it. And to see this out on Front Street like this, I don’t know. Anyhow, the article said that each family had been given permission to initiate 10 new members. [2:04] And they were instructed that they had to get these, take these guys from proven moneymakers within their own family, people that they knew. because, you know, they know that they can be infiltrated. So they want to make sure that people that didn’t have any legal problems faced them at that time. Now, you know, you’re going to get some legal problems eventually. So you just have to, you know, people whose family members you know or maybe you’re an extended relative of your own, if you’re a maid guy or you’re a boss, you want somebody that’s proven their loyalty. Somebody’s gone to the joint and kept their mouth shut before. I mean, a guy that goes in, does a tray or five years or whatever. Somebody does 10 years. I know a guy here in Kansas City, my friend, Steve St. John, he did 10 years. Now, he wasn’t involved in a mafia crime, but he didn’t talk. And he’s the kind of guy that, you know, people will look out to, you know, to hold up to this higher standard, to higher and high esteem in that world. And, you know, he does not commit any more crimes. Would he be a guy that you would want to commit a crime with? Bright guy, and he didn’t talk, and he could have. Believe me, he knew stuff, and he could have talked, and he wouldn’t do it. The books were closed in 1957 after Joe Valacci started testifying in 1962. [3:27] He talked about the different—he described the ceremony for the first time, the whole pricking of the finger, burning of the hand, the loyalty oath, which has been reported by other people that have come in angelo uh leonardo reported it i found that one he really did it in detail and they even taped one in boston area in the patriarchy family here in the last several years so they shut down the books they were so scared of infiltration and. [3:57] Finally, the heads of the fine families met and they opened them up, given these kind of certain restrictions, if you will. Each guy can get 10 people, select proven moneymakers and that kind of thing. They still take the oath of silence. [4:15] And there’s no doubt that it was going to be tightly controlled by these mob families. As the FBI at the time said, they reported in this article says they’ve been holding initiation ceremonies in New York for the past month. My boss reads that. He said, come on, what’s up with this? This agent said that these ceremonies have been held in the homes of underbosses and selected family captains, not in the homes of the bosses because they think they have too much surveillance on them. Apparently, he said, the initiation ceremony they were using at that time was still really close to what Bellacci had described. The guns, knives laying there, the oaths of silence, the whole thing. And some of them that were initiated at the time, and I’d be curious, you know, get a hold of me or comment on the Facebook or on the YouTube. Who all was made during this time? This report indicates a guy named John Russo, who was a driver and a bodyguard for Frank Thierry, who was supposedly the boss of the Vito Genovese family at the time. He would have been kind of a new boss. It’s another thing. There were some new bosses at the time. I think that’s one reason they got this through. Benaro Magano. He was the guy known as Benny eggs. I’ve heard of him. He’s a very successful bookmaker and loan shark Salvatore franchise. He was, uh, He ran all the gambling operations for Sonny Franchise, who was a captain in the Colombo family. [5:38] Kind of the article surmised, and probably they got this from an agent, this kind of shows the decline of Carlo Gambino, his lessening of his influence in some of the newer mob, like I said, some of the newer mob bosses were coming in at the time. [5:55] It also kind of showed the emergence of Carmine Galante. He had come back out of jail and he had like assumed he was going to be the boss of the Bonanno family uh just spent 15 years in jail kept his mouth shut you know he felt like he was owed and he was owed and of course we had time Rusty Rustelli was inside at the time and and he was supposedly the heir apparent I believe but he really led the fight to open the books now if you remember he was trying to bring in the zips he was bringing these Sicilians to pump up his family and get into narcotics. He knew those guys, you know, first of all, they didn’t really speak the language. And if he brought them over, they would be so loyal to him that he could trust them to be loyal to him. And he wanted to be able to make those guys, you know, at the time they had a pretty new boss, the Lucchese family and Tony Duck, Tony Ducks, Anthony Corralo was a new boss. He came from Queens, the Queens faction of that family, Carmine Persico. So he was in jail at the time, prison for a period of time during this time. But he had just come through the Columbo Wars and taken over. And, you know, he orchestrated the hit on Joey Gallo and finally ended that whole mess there. And everybody got out the mattresses and went back home, I guess. Now, he was in prison. He had appointed his brother, Alphonse, to run the family. [7:17] Galante’s argument, according to the article, was all the mafia families were declining. And the old guys were...
Transcribe →The Infamous Vinnie Teresa
Dec 23, 202400:46:35Tap to summarizeIn this last interview with our good friend and contributor, Camillus “Cam” Robinson, Gary and Cam discuss the infamous government informant Vincent “Vinnie” Teresa. Cam died recently and I will feel this loss for a long time. His gentle nature and prodigious work effort was always a great benfit to the podcast and to everybody around him. Rest in Peace to my friend and collaborator in this crazy world of mafia history. Camillus was a great historian and an excellent writer. Check out his book by clicking on the title, Chicago Swan Song: A Mob Wife’s Story. Lisa Swan became the wife of Frank Calabrese, Jr., a collector for his father, the notorious and brutal Frank “Frankie the Breeze” Calabrese, a high-ranking member of the infamous Chinatown Crew. It’s all here. The money, the violence, the drugs, the greed, and the murders that surrounded her, as well as her deep passion to break free from a lifestyle that could change with the flash of a single bullet. Swan’s firsthand, intimate look inside the insular and secretive Chicago Outfit details her life inside the Calabrese Clan, one of the First Families of the Chicago Mob. She describes, with clarity and occasional humor, her discovery of the dark side of the Mafia and her battle to save herself, her children, and eventually her husband from the gritty realities of the Mob. In this episode, we learn that Vinnie Teresa was an early mobster in the FBI’s vaunted Top Echelon Informant program. In the end, Vinne Teresa was caught in an act of perjury when he tried to implicate Meyer Lansky in a criminal conspiracy. Subscribe to get new gangster stories every week. Hit me up on Venmo for a cup of coffee or a shot and a beer @ganglandwire Click here to “buy me a cup of coffee” To go to the store or make a donation or rent Ballot Theft: Burglary, Murder, Coverup, click here To rent Brothers against Brothers, the documentary, click here. To rent Gangland Wire, the documentary, click here To buy my Kindle book, Leaving Vegas: The True Story of How FBI Wiretaps Ended Mob Domination of Las Vegas Casinos. To subscribe on iTunes click here. Please give me a review and help others find the podcast. Donate to the podcast. Click here! Transcript [0:00] Well, hey, all you wiretappers, good to be back here in the studio, Gangland Wire. This is Gary Jenkins, retired Kansas City Police Intelligence Detective and now podcaster, documentary filmmaker. And I am here with my good friend and periodic co-host, if you will, Amulus, Camillus Robinson. Cam, thanks a lot for coming on the show. Gary, I always have a blast. I mean, you and I, you got me started in this and anytime I can come on, we just love to. We have a good time getting together, don’t we? Yeah, we do. So oh you know a little aside i was just researching some old stuff on chicago or newspaper clip and i saw there was a grand jury about gambling in gary indiana see cam used to live up by gary indiana and we did a show about the gary indiana family that’s right. [0:49] Ran by chicago of course hell chicago ran everything some people even say they ran kansas city they didn’t really but they had a lot of influence down here kansas city next savella did not do much if he thought iupa wouldn’t approve he wouldn’t do it he he got iupa’s approval on any major things outside of kansas city for sure they had a swung a big stick didn’t they absolutely savella wasn’t the kind of guy who answered to people but i think he was smart enough to know who were the big fish in the pond yeah he was smart anyhow we’re going to talk about Vinnie Teresa. Vinnie Teresa is one of the earliest mob books I ever read. I’ll never forget, Kim. I was in a library in the junior college. I must have been taking a class and I was just poking around. I found this book about the mafia. I wasn’t into organized crime at the time. I started reading this book about this Vinnie Teresa and all the stuff that he talked about, which is pretty controversial. That first one was My Life in the Mafia in 1973, which he wrote with another guy. Do you remember that book? I know you’ve referred to his testimony in his books. [1:56] Absolutely. I learned a lot about what you can pick up from a lot of what Vinnie Teresa is just the inner workings and the day-to-day sort of scumbaggery that these guys, the scams and the cons and the, and ripping people off and how they lean on people. It really, it being so early, people didn’t have a friend reference except the Godfather. And yeah, that book really, really opened my eyes to a lot of things. [2:21] Interesting. You know, his, his second book, he documents his life during his time in witness protection. And that was in 1975. Then later on, 1978, he wrote actually a fictional novel called wise guys. And I don’t, I don’t, I’ve never read it. I’ve never heard anybody talk about it. So I don’t know what that’s about. Um, My mother told me when his stuff first came out, people didn’t believe it could possibly be true. It was like we just said, it being so early, people just didn’t have a frame of reference on what the mob was and certainly nobody coming in from the cold. And she said, I remember people talking, oh, he can’t, none of that can be true, can it? Can that be really how these guys operate? Now, he was, his grandfather came from Sicily, who was a mafia member in Sicily and bootlegger during Prohibition. So he comes by it, honestly, being in the mob, shall we say. [3:18] I gave him a lot of gravitas with some of the old foot in the door. You know, every one of these guys we’ve ever done anything about their whole life, that would start out, you know, they get caught by burglar doing burglaries and robbing stuff as teenagers. And he got expelled from school for violence against the teachers and all that kind of stuff. He was in, according to what I read, he was an inveterate gambler, he was a degenerate gambler. Total degenerate. Early age. He goes in the Navy for, everybody had to go in the service back then. I’m talking like right after World War II, if you were of a certain age, even all the way up till, I don’t know, 1970s till the end of Vietnam. Everybody did two years. If you didn’t go to college and get married and have a kid, you went in. And he went in the Navy, but that didn’t last very long. Bad conduct discharge. So. Roly poly fellow too. So I can’t imagine him doing his PT too effectively. I don’t imagine he was real gung ho on doing those pull-ups and running the obstacle course. Let alone all this just runs. Yeah. [4:31] So of course he gets married and as they all do and start getting jobs and he gets caught stealing from his employers i mean it’s a usual deal but you know he’s got mob connections so with the patriarchy family so now he you know guy a good thief like this what’s he gonna do they’re gonna see him and they’re gonna pick him up and he’ll start getting involved with them Remember much about his early days with Patriarcha family? You know, I know that, you know, as I said, because of his family connections that entered him in with a Patriarcha, the guy, one of the guys who predated Patriarcha, Joe Lombardo was sort of like the old man, sort of like the, some of the older guys who would be around Kansas City that, that Civella would go and, and, and pay his respects to and seek their counsel. Joe Lombardo was that kind of guy in Rhode Island that patriarch would always go and seek his counsel and sit with him as an equal in a way. And because Teresa had those, he worked for Joe Lombardo in some limited capacities early on as a youth, sort of cartage theft and trucks and different things. But he really, because he had that pedigree, that was what really gave him, he got to skip a couple of steps when it came to getting in with the big names. And he was a sharp guy, really was a good earner, just like you said, he just degenerate gambler. [5:55] Yeah, it’s an interesting life. These guys, they’ve got this history and this background. They take a man, he starts making connections with him. He was kind of a white collar crime guy from early on because he was a big gambler. Gamblers are always going to be white collar crime guys. One of his early things he did was insurance jobs, getting a business building, doing an insurance gig. From then on, he starts making money for people and it’s a no brainer from then on. And he even gets involved with taking gambling junkets to Las Vegas. Back in those days, you had to go to Las Vegas. And so they’d come up with junkets. We had one in Kansas City. That’s what they use as a cover to bring the skim money back out of the Tropicana. The gambling junket by a guy named Carl Caruso. Well, he started running gambling junkets from the New England area to go to Las Vegas. And even I also went to England down the Caribbean where they’d gamble at casinos. [6:48] Teresa went to Haiti and he, per his account, had...
Transcribe →